The Functions of Symbolic Racism

Symbolic racism (SR) has attracted critique and controversy. One controversy that has remained unresolved is the function
of SR. SR theorists suggest that SR originates from Black individualism and represents a new form of racism. Others suggest
that SR originates in opposition to equality and serves to legitimize these socially inappropriate attitudes. The current
paper argues that SR can arise from both Black individualism and anti-equality attitudes, thus serving both as a new expression
of racism but also as a legitimizing ideology. A preliminary test of this hybrid model was examined with survey data from
a community and university sample. Results suggest that a hybrid model of the underpinnings of SR explains more variance in
SR than either the Black individualism or legitimizing ideology models. Furthermore, SR mediated the relationships between
both anti-equality attitudes and Black individualism on opposition to affirmative action policy and diversity in work and
education settings.